Many users have been waiting to see OLED technology come into the mainstream for computer displays. Sure, OLED screens are available on some cell phones and MP3 players (and even the C6 Corvette’s gauge cluster), but those are relatively small displays compared to what would be seen on a typical laptop, desktop or TV display.

Many users have been waiting to see OLED technology come into the mainstream for computer displays. Sure, OLED screens are available on some cell phones and MP3 players (and even the C6 Corvette’s gauge cluster), but those are relatively small displays compared to what would be seen on a typical laptop, desktop or TV display.

Researchers at the Technical University of Braunschweig are taking OLED technology one step further with the development of a transparent TFT display:

Their approach is to use transparent TFTs (thin-film transistors) made of a 100-nanometer-thick layer of zinc-tin-oxide, which transmits more than 90 percent of visible light. Such transistors are more often made of silicon, which is used for LCDs (liquid crystal displays) but is highly absorptive in the visible part of the spectrum.

The displays can be varied in brightness from 0 to 700 candelas per square meter by altering the voltage.

Could we be just one step closer to Minority Report with interactive transparent displays, self-driving cars and retinal scanners?